Number of Tourists in Georgia Increased by 24.8% in September, 2017

The FINANCIAL -- According to the data of September 2017, 763 729 international visitors visited Georgia, which competes the same period of the previous year with the increase of 20.9%.

In September, the number of tourists (24 hours and more) equaled to 380 895 and recorded 24.8% increase in comparison with the same period of 2016.

Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, Nino Javakhadze as well as Head of National Tourism Administration, Giorgi Chogovadze and Head of Mountain Resorts Development Company, Sandro Onoprishvili introduced the highlights of September as well as the 9 months of the current year in the tourism sector to the media representatives at the press conference.

According to Nino Javakhadze, the number of international travelers in the 9 months of 2017 reached 5 822 835, which is 19.2% more compared to the same period of the previous year. Thereafter, the number of tourists has increased by 28.8% in 9 months.

“The Government of Georgia will continue to promote the growth of economic activity carried out in tourism sector and will transform Georgia as a tourist destination for 4 seasons, where the environment for recreation, entertainment, business relations and recreational purposes will be available with high quality services throughout the year,” - Nino Javakhadze stated.

As the Deputy Minister added, in terms of growth of tourism flows, revenues from international tourism increases significantly as in the 8 months of 2017, tourism revenues increased by 29.1% and amounted to 1 859.6 million USD, according to Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia.

In addition to neighboring countries in the 9 months of 2017, the number of visitors from Iran, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, Israel, Germany and Belarus significantly contributed to the increase in the number of international travelers. Accordingly, the level of diversification of tourist flows is increased - Giorgi Chogovadze noted at the press conference.

“National Tourism Administration of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development will continue to support many international activities in order to increase the flow of tourists, which will lead to more income and more employed people in our country,” – Giorgi Chogovadze commented.

Participants of the press conference also talked about mountain resorts of Georgia where the number of visitors has increased significantly during the summer season. “In the summer of 2017, the number of visitors to all the resorts (Gudauri, Bakuriani, Svaneti, Goderdzi) have increased by 17% compared to the previous year. From this, there was a significant increase in Gudauri, where the number of visitors increased by 300%. As for Bakuriani, by 2017, the number of visitors has increased by 46% compared to 2016 and amounted to 40 265 visitors,” - Aleksandre Onoprishvili noted.

As the Head of Mountain Resorts Development Company, Sandro Onoprishvili added, construction of the Mestia-Hatsvali chairlift, which started in the summer of 2017, will be completed by the end of the year. The open-top 6 seated chairlift, which will be stretched along 1 200 meters, is designed by the world's leading manufacturer of ropeways, cable cars and ski lifts – Doppelmayr. Moreover, Giorgi Onoprishvili estimates that the construction of Mestia-Hatsvali chairlift will be of high importance in terms of connecting the mountain and the center of the region with each other.

“It is important that Georgia strives to host skiing and snowboarding freestyle competition in 2023. If Georgia gains the right to host the World Championship, tens of thousands of visitors will arrive in Georgia which will contribute to the popularization of winter sports, as well as the growth of visitors in the country,” - Aleksandre Onoprishvili noted.